Molecular dynamics study on low-energy sputtering of carbon material by Xe ion bombardment

The low-energy sputtering of carbon material under Xe ion bombardment is studied through the molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. For the normal incidence of Xe, the MD result of sputtering yield almost agrees with the experimental result by Williams et al. (AIAA-2004-3788). However, the experimental result shows a less incident angle dependence than the MD result because the experiment performed on a rough surface. It is found that the sputtered particles have memory of the projectile because the sputtered particles by the low-energy projectile undergo only a few collisions before the ejection. Low density of an amorphous carbon surface brings the decrease of the sputtering yield and the increase of high-energy sputtered atoms.